


A Letter

by Anonymous



Category: Da Vinci's Demons
Genre: F/M, How Do I Tag, M/M, My First AO3 Post
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-18
Updated: 2018-10-18
Packaged: 2019-08-04 02:27:45
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,095
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16338056
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/
Summary: Leo gets a letter from Girolamo asking him to come and help his wife.





	A Letter

Leo got a message one day.   
–Zo, I have to go and see Girolamo.  
-Who?  
-Riario.  
Zo growled but Leo went anyway.

Girolamo Riario was sitting outside a castle when Leo arrived on horseback.  
-Nice horse.  
-Thank you.  
-Thank you for coming, Leo. I did not know if you would.  
Leo put one hand on the count's shoulder. –You said you needed my help.  
-My wife. He blinked away tears. –I think she will die.  
-Let me see if I can help.

If anyone could help it was Leo, that is why Girolamo had sent for him. But Leo looked grave when he saw Caterina and used his clever hands to see what was wrong.  
-The healers all said the same, the count said. The child will not come out.  
-I agree, Leo said. But I will try to save her. But you should say goodbye to her in case I cannot help her.

Long Ago:  
Caterina was very young and very beautiful and had ambition and she wanted to marry Girolamo, unlike her cousin. Girolamo was not used to being loved and his father was making him get married so it was strange for him.  
The pope told him to get an heir and Caterina wanted Girolamo to do it. Girolamo closed his eyes and did his duty, because he thought Caterina was beautiful but he did not feel the lust he knew he should. May be it was because he had spent so long ignoring the lust that he did not know how to feel it even for his wife!

Later on Girolamo met Leo and he fell in love in a new way and that lust was bad. Lust for a woman was alright if you used it to make babies but lust for a man was a sin.

On the ship as Girolamo tried to find the book of leaves before Leo did, he found a new lust in Zita his slave girl. He told her to leave but she wanted to be with him. She was more gentle than Caterina but she was as insistent and Girolamo gave in. It was better than with Caterina but not as good as other men said sex was.

Zita died and Girolamo blamed Leo but he still loved Leo.

Laura tried to have him too and Girolamo tried to pretend she was Zita but it didn't work.

After he killed the pope, Girolamo had enough of playing politics and went home to see if he could be happy with Caterina. She was happy to have her husband return and for a week they were good company. He suspected she had been sleeping with some of the servants but he had let Zita and Laura have sex with him so he did not think he could be angry.

Soon Caterina began telling him of her plans and how she needed more sons to help her carry them out.

Girolamo pretended she was Zita but it did not work with her either. Zita had never mocked him for not being able to get hard at once.

He thought all the time about Leo. Knowing but he could not have Leo. That worked sometimes.

Caterina got pregnant again at last but when the birthing time came she could not bring the baby out and when the doctors and the midwife could not make her deliver, Girolamo wrote a letter and sent it to Leo. He did not know if Leo would even read it. He did not know if Leo would come. He did not know if he wanted to see Leo again.

Girolamo wanted Leo to save his wife because Girolamo was a dutiful husband and he had loved Caterina as much as he could. And he wanted to see Leo because he loved him. And he was scared too in case he was overcome by love for Leo if he saw him again.

Leo did come. Girolamo was overwhelmed with gratefulness.

Now:  
-Goodbye, the count told Caterina. If Leo cannot help then only God can and I have prayed but He is not listening.  
Girolamo went outside and sat down.  
-Are you sure you have said goodbye? Leo asked.  
-Yes. Girolamo gave a shudder. I did not choose to marry her. My father told me to wed her cousin but she was stubborn and Caterina was young and agreeable or so we thought and I married her. I thought someone could love me at last.  
Leo sat down next to Girolamo. –She doesn't love you?  
-She said she did. Now I do not know. When she was young she told me I was strong and brave. But now she criticises me endlessly. She says I am weak.  
-You are not weak.  
The count looked at Leo. –She demands I keep making her pregnant. She says she will birth an army. But I do not – I have tried. I love her, or I have tried to. I do not want to impregnate her. I like bedding her little but she says it is my duty as her husband. She says she will tell my father if I do not bed her that I am a sinner who wants to bed men.  
Leo looked sad. –I bed men. I am a sinner?  
-Yes. I wish, the count said, I wish I could be a sinner like you. I wish I could bed you without being afraid of hell.  
-or your wife?  
Girolamo nodded. –You can try to save her? If you do maybe she will like you and you can try to tell her that love is not sinful and that I can love her without always making her with child.

Leo said he would try to save Caterina.

She was said to be a great leader and the count cared about her, and Leo was smart, and he did his best.  
-Don't watch, Leo told Girolamo as he cut the countess open.  
The baby was too big and by the time Leo cut it out the baby was dead from no oxygen and Caterina died from loss of blood.  
-I'm sorry, Leo said, comforting Riario.  
-Even you cannot work miracles, Girolamo said sadly.  
They buried the bodies and Leo remembered how the count had buried Zita far away and years ago. It was not fair that Girolamo had to endure another loss.

-Let me comfort you, said Leo and he kissed Girolamo.  
-It is sin, but I will sin gladly with you, Girolamo said and he kissed Leo and said, Let us go to bed.


End file.
